Garmin is pushing out fresh beta software updates for a pair of its popular smartwatches, bringing crucial fixes and refinements to the user experience. Owners of the Forerunner 970 are receiving version 15.12, while the Forerunner 570 is getting version 15.13. These updates aim to resolve several persistent bugs, enhance stability, and update localized text across both devices.
Forerunner 970: Bug Fixes and Performance Enhancements
The beta update for the Forerunner 970 addresses a specific issue related to one of the watch’s handy features: the flashlight strobe. Previously, users might have encountered a fault where the strobe function wouldn’t activate during an activity—this has now been corrected, ensuring the safety feature works reliably when needed.
Furthermore, a significant change involves the sleep mode shortcut. This shortcut has been removed because sleep tracking is now managed more holistically through the device’s focus modes, streamlining how users manage their rest periods. The update also tackles several stability concerns. Garmin has fixed issues that could lead to the device resetting unexpectedly and resolved a bug that occasionally caused the screen to go blank.
In terms of activity tracking, an important fix corrects a problem with activity voice alerts that were not playing at the intended frequency. A crucial safety enhancement addresses a fault where the incident detection alarm played through connected headphones instead of the device’s speaker, which could reduce its effectiveness—this will now correctly sound through the speaker. Finally, the update fixes a minor but frustrating issue where the watch might incorrectly “lock” onto a nearby running track and fail to adjust the GPS when the user leaves the track, ensuring more accurate outdoor run data. Various other minor issues have been resolved, and translations have been updated.
Forerunner 570: Key Stability and Alert Improvements
The Forerunner 570’s beta update largely mirrors the stability and user interface changes seen in the 970’s release. Just like its counterpart, the shortcut for enabling sleep has been removed, integrating sleep management into the focus modes for a smoother experience.
This version also focuses on enhancing the device’s reliability. It corrects the timing problem with activity voice alerts to ensure users hear prompts at the right moments. Critical stability fixes address multiple causes of device resets and the bug that could result in the screen unexpectedly going blank. The safety feature improvements are also present here, with the update ensuring that the incident detection alarm sounds through the device’s speaker rather than through connected headphones. Furthermore, the fix for the track locking issue is included, which improves accuracy for runners near established running tracks. The update concludes with general fixes and updated translations.
How to Install the New Beta Software
Users wishing to install the new beta software immediately can initiate the download manually on their Forerunner device.
To do so, navigate through the watch menu using the following path: Main menu > Settings > System > Software Update > Check For Updates.
Also Read: Garmin Smartwatch Vibration Issue on Android After Recent App Update
